The Vote That Banned Britain's Slave Trade
On March 25, 1807, after twenty years of campaigning, the Slave Trade Act received royal assent, making Britain's slave trade illegal from May 1.
Tagged: parliament
Murder in the Lobby of the Commons
On May 11, 1812, a ruined merchant shot Prime Minister Spencer Perceval dead in the lobby of the House of Commons — the only assassination of a serving British prime minister.
"Useless and Dangerous": The Day Parliament Abolished the House of Lords
On March 19, 1649, England's House of Commons voted to abolish the House of Lords, declaring it 'useless and dangerous' — seven weeks after executing King Charles I.
The Virginian Who Broke Into Britain's Most Exclusive Club
On December 1, 1919, Nancy Astor took her seat in the House of Commons, becoming the first woman ever to sit in the British Parliament.